Wednesday, June 30, 2010

eBay and RIM Offer eBay Application for BlackBerry Smartphones in Six More Countries

eBay application allows sellers to relist items directly within app; buyers can access more information about sellers

san Jose, Calif. and Waterloo, Ont. - Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq: RIMM; TSX: RIM), a world leader in wireless innovation, and eBay, a global leader in mobile commerce and the world’s largest online marketplace, today jointly announced that the free eBay Application for BlackBerry® smartphones is immediately available on BlackBerry App World™ in six more countries: Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom.* The application is also now officially available to North American BlackBerry smartphone users after a successful beta preview period.

”We are thrilled to be extending eBay’s mobile presence to millions of BlackBerry smartphone users around the globe,” said Steve Yankovich, vice president of platform business solutions and mobile at eBay Inc. ”When developing any mobile application, we take into account the unique features and advantages of the device to better meet our customers’ needs. With BlackBerry’s Push Service and multi-tasking technology, eBay buyers and sellers are able to stay up-to-date on great deals and sales.”
With the eBay Application for BlackBerry smartphones, users can search, bid, buy and check their eBay buying and selling activity virtually anywhere. The application leverages the BlackBerry® Push Service to allow users to be wirelessly notified of the status of eBay listings in real-time. With alerts, eBay buyers can be notified when they have won an item or have been outbid, or if a listing on their Watch List is ending soon. Further, eBay sellers can be notified when a sale ends and will be provided with buyer information and the sale price. All notifications are directed to the user’s BlackBerry® Email inbox and, because the BlackBerry OS supports multi-tasking, users can simply click the email notification to automatically launch or switch to the eBay application.
“The idea of making eBay listings more conveniently accessible and manageable on BlackBerry smartphones is a 'natural', and the seamless mobile experience enabled by the unique push-based BlackBerry platform provides a perfect complement to the purchase process,” said Alan Brenner, senior vice president, BlackBerry Platform at Research In Motion.
The official eBay Application for BlackBerry smartphones includes features such as:
· Add to Calendar – Add the end time for listings to the BlackBerry Calendar and set reminders
· Daily Deals – View limited time bargains on popular items, where items are often over 50% off the original price and include free shipping**
· My eBay – Access personal eBay activity including Watched items, Bids, Sales, Saved Searches and Favorite Sellers
· Member Messages – Receive and reply to messages and emails sent through My eBay
· Payments – PayPal account users can purchase items within the application***
· Re-List Items – Re-list items for sale when current listing ends with no sale
· Sort Search Results by Distance – Sort search results by distance from location (up to 1,200 miles)
As a leading force in global mobile commerce, eBay Inc. is expected to generate $1.5 billion in gross merchandise volume (GMV) in 2010 through its mobile platforms. With the international availability of the eBay Application for BlackBerry smartphones, more mobile shoppers will have access to the 200+ million listings across eBay’s global marketplace. Today, over half of eBay’s mobile GMV comes from outside the United States.
For more information on the eBay Application for BlackBerry smartphones, please visit www.blackberry.com/ebay.
To view a demo of the eBay application for BlackBerry, please visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhDB2XVLKd0
Availability
The eBayApplication for BlackBerry smartphones is free and is now available on BlackBerry App World in North America, Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom (www.blackberry.com/appworld).
*The eBay application supports BlackBerry smartphones running BlackBerry OS version 4.5 or higher and requires a BlackBerry service plan that includes Internet access. The application also requires access to a wireless network.
**Daily Deals are currently only available on Australia, Canada, Germany, United Kingdom and United States versions of the eBay Application for BlackBerry smartphones.
***Purchasing items in the eBay Application for BlackBerry smartphones with PayPal is only available in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
About eBay Inc.
Founded in 1995 in San Jose, Calif., eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) connects millions of buyers and sellers globally on a daily basis through eBay, the world's largest online marketplace, and PayPal, which enables individuals and businesses to securely, easily and quickly send and receive online payments. We also reach millions through specialized marketplaces such as StubHub, the world's largest ticket marketplace, and eBay Classifieds sites, which together have a presence in more than 1,000 cities around the world. For more information about the company and our global portfolio of online brands, visit www.ebayinc.com.
For more information on eBay mobile, visit www.ebay.com/mobile.
About Research In Motion (RIM)
Research In Motion is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of innovative wireless solutions for the worldwide mobile communications market. Through the development of integrated hardware, software and services that support multiple wireless network standards, RIM provides platforms and solutions for seamless access to time-sensitive information including email, phone, SMS messaging, Internet and intranet-based applications. RIM technology also enables a broad array of third party developers and manufacturers to enhance their products and services with wireless connectivity to data. RIM’s portfolio of award-winning products, services and embedded technologies are used by thousands of organizations around the world and include the BlackBerryÒ wireless platform, the RIM Wireless Handheld™ product line, software development tools, radio-modems and software/hardware licensing agreements. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, RIM operates offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. RIM is listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market (Nasdaq: RIMM) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: RIM). For more information, visit www.rim.com or www.blackberry.com.

rim.com

Friday, June 25, 2010

Automatically Track and Email Business Mileage Using Innovative Application For BlackBerry Smartphones

New version of VQ Mileage Tracker app not only tracks business mileage but now also automatically emails reports to user

Toronto, ON - VQ Mileage Tracker™ (www.4tracker.com), an app for BlackBerry® smartphones that automatically tracks business mileage, now also automatically emails reports to users, making it even easier for employees to save time while increasing accuracy and accountability for employers and people who are self-employed.

“VQ Mileage Tracker has been a run-away success since it launched this Spring,” says Harris Korn, president of Xpressions Inc., creators of VQ Mileage Tracker (www.4tracker.com) and VQ CarFinder (www.4carfinder). “Since then, we’ve added a number of new features based on user feedback, making VQ Mileage Tracker an even more efficient and effective tool for business people to track and report their mileage.”

New features in version 3.2.0 of VQ Mileage Tracker include:

  • Auto-Report Generation: Users can set VQ Mileage Tracker to automatically email them weekly, monthly or quarterly Mileage Report spreadsheets
  • Track to nearest tenth of mile/km: Users can track to the nearest tenth of a mile/km or to the nearest mile/km
  • Time Tracker: In addition to reporting start and end address and distance travelled, VQ Mileage Tracker now also reports trip duration in hours and minutes so users can more accurately track time spent driving for business
  • Advanced Address Capture: VQ Mileage Tracker can capture the address where the user parked even if they parked underground

“VQ Mileage Tracker saves business people time and spares them the frustration and inefficiency of manually tracking their mileage,” adds Korn. “It’s great for anyone who has to be on the road for work.”

“Most existing mileage tracking apps are what we call ‘digital pencils’, in that they require you to manually key in everything,” says Korn. “VQ Mileage Tracker does all of this for the user. It automatically notes the date and time, how far you drove, and the address you drove to every time you drive your car and now it can automatically email you all this information when you’re ready to submit an expense report.”

An Enterprise version of VQ Mileage Tracker has also been launched which enables companies to efficiently and cost-effectively track employee mileage.

VQ Mileage Tracker uses the GPS built into a BlackBerry smartphone along with in-vehicle Bluetooth® to automatically determine when the user starts and ends a trip. Owners of vehicles without built-in Bluetooth can purchase a VQ Bluetooth Car Charger (a Car Charger that also simulates in-vehicle Bluetooth) at www.4tracker.com, or they can use the app in semi-automatic mode – they just click on the app when they start driving, and then click the app again when they reach their destination. VQ Mileage Tracker does the rest.

“The business community’s response to VQ Mileage Tracker has been exceptional. Salespeople and field service staff see this as a great time saver. Management in sales, field services and finance see VQ Mileage Tracker as an efficient and cost effective tool to increase staff productivity and reporting accuracy. We’re also exploring enterprise-level licensing opportunities for companies to distribute VQ Mileage Tracker to their staff as a productivity tool.”

VQ Mileage Tracker is currently promotionally priced on BlackBerry App World™ (www.blackberry.com/appworld). VQ Mileage Tracker works on all current BlackBerry smartphone models that have built-in GPS and run BlackBerry OS version 4.6 or higher.

For more information go to www.4tracker.com

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About Xpressions Inc:

Xpressions Inc. (www.xpinc.com), creators of innovative and time/stress-saving apps like VQ Mileage Tracker (www.4tracker.com) and VQ CarFinder (www.4carfinder.com), is a Product Innovation company that invents and markets technology-driven products. Xpressions Inc. is a BlackBerry® Alliance Associate Member and a Forum Nokia Pro Member, and is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

© 2010 Xpressions Inc. All Rights Reserved. VQ Mileage Tracker, VQ CarFinder and related marks, images and symbols are exclusive properties and trademarks of Xpressions Inc and VisionQuest Innovations.

The BlackBerry and RIM families of related marks, images and symbols are the exclusive properties and trademarks of Research In Motion Limited.

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